Splash-guard attachment for road vehicles



July 7, 1925.

H. V. N. GRAVELEY SPLASH GUARD ATTACHMENT FOR ROAD VEHICLES Filed Nov. 5, 1924 2 Shuts- Sheet 1 ,2 2 U 3 f1 f l2 1 y Q EH5 l v 5 L f a A L04 o \l 7 LO?) 3 Ag ai" a. d/

July 7, 1925. 1,545,315

7 H. V. N GRAVELEY SPLASlH sumnuncnuau'r FOR ROAD VEHICLES 3) 1 Hue Nov. 5. 1924 2 Shuts-Sheet 2 .F''"

Patented July 7, 19250 nnrrno stares PATENT orsics.

srnasn-euann nrraennnm non Application filed 5, i924. Se ial No. 747,916.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, I-Iannr Voices NORRIS Gnavnnnr, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 5 (folders Rise, Hendon, in the county of London, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in or Relating to Splash-Guard Attachmcnts for Road Vehicles, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention has reference to splash guard attachments for use on road vehicles, the attachment being of the kind which comprises parts movable relatively to the vehicle and normally disposed when in use at the side of the lower portion of the wheel of the vehicle and is adapted to es operated for raising the splash guard from its position of use upon a part of the attachment engaging with a curb or other obstruction 011 the roadway. In connection with attachments of this character it has been already proposed to move the splash guard by springs to the out of use position; and further it has been previously proposed to move the splash guard to the out of use position upon the release of a'locking device through the said part engaging with the curb or other obstruction, and to restore the splash guard to its position of use and-enable it to be again engaged by the locking device through the medium of flexible connections and pulleys.

According to this invention the splash guard of the attachment of the character referred to is returned automatically to the position of use by mechanical power. To this end the front, rear, side or under surface of the said part of the attachment is capable of engaging with the curb or other obstruction and by such engagement the part is adapted to be moved longitudinally and transversely in relation to the normal plane of the splash guard and upwardly relatively to the other parts of the attachment for operating a releasing means thereby permitting the movable portion of the frame to be moved a predetermined dis tance from its position of uscand after moving such distance to -operate mechanism whereby the movable frame is caused tobe returned to its position of use. attachment is caused to be operated by the upward movement of the said part, this generally occurs during the descent of the splash guard to the position of use and has for elfect the reversal of movement of the Where the 1 splash guard in order to move it clearof the upper surface of the curb or other obstruction. The attachment comprises a fixed frame on which is mounted the movable portion in the form of a movable frame which is fitted at its lower end with the splash guard and the said part which is in the form of a trip device capable of being operated when the guard is brought into engagement with the curb or other obstruction for disengaging the releasing means such as a movable pawl or its equivalent from a proj ection on the fixed frame and releasing the movable frame to permit the latter being raisedby aispring or springs or other suitable power device for moving the splash guard from its position of use whereat it may be damaged, the movable frame being returned for bringing the splash guard again to a positionof use by a rotatable member capable of being engaged with a part of or connected with the correspond ing-road wheel of the vehicle and serving to place the springor springs under compression or tension for again raising the movable frame, the rotatable member being moved into and out of engagement with the said part of or connected with the road wheel by extensions on the movable frame, such extensions operating the said mechanism on Which the rotatable member is mounted and the mechanism being controlled bya detent arranged in connection with the trip device.

In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect the same will now be fully described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of the splash guard attachment in the position of use,

parts being-illustrated in dot and dash lines to clearly illustrate the parts to the rear thereof.

Figure 2 is a simliar viewto Figure 1 illustrating the movable frame in the raise position out of use. 7 1

Figure 3 is a section taken on the line 8- -3 of Figure 1 and Figure 4 a side elevation of details to an enlarged scale.

In the construction of the splash guard attachment illustrated in the said drawings, the. movable frame comprisesa pair of parallel rods a fitted at their lower ends with the splash guard?) and connected at their upper ends by a cross piece a Rollers a are pr0- vided at the upper terminal ends of the said parallel rods a for engagement with parallel bars d forming part of the fixed frame, the said bars being connected together by a cross bar d and similarly fitted with rollers 6 bearing against the parallel rods of the movable frame. 1 The fixed frame is capable of being 'detachably supported on the axle of the corresponding road wheel. The splash guard is capable of being moved lengthwise, transversely or upwardly in relation to the movable frame when brought into engagement with the curb or other obstruction and when so moved serves to operate a spring controlled hemispherical member f having a rounded under surface and a flat upper surface f as shown in Figure 3. When thus operated the said flat upper surface f operates against the lower end of a slidable rod 9 mounted on the movable frame and disengages a pivotally mounted pawl h from a projecting finger k attached to the fixed frame. The hemispherical member 7 is arranged in a bearing f attached to the movable frame and is controlled by a spring f which is disposed in a sleeve f attached to the said bearing f and serves to normally maintain the position of the guard relatively to the movable frame. Upon the pawl 71, being released from the finger h the movable frame is moved relatively to the fixed frame by the spring j actuating a bell crank lever Zr pivoted at, k to a part of the fixed frame and having one arm k pivotally connected to. the movable frame and the other arm 73 arranged in engagement with the spring or parts connected therewith. The spring j is disposed between an abutment plate j secured to the fixed frame and a movable plate 3' adjustably mounted on a rod pivotally connected at one end to the armk of the. lever and provided at the other end witha' plunger j which is arranged in a cylinder 3' and operates in conjunction therewith as a buffer device for damping the'operation of the spring immediately prior to the completion of its action in raising the movable frame. To enable the operation of the buffer device to be regulatedit is provided with one or more adjustable apertures either in the cylin- (ilrical wall or end abutment plate j of the cylinder Vith such an arrangement there is imparted to the movable frame a comparatively rapid upward movement which is damped immediately prior tov the termination of. such movement in order to avoid appreciable concussion between the fixed and movable frames. Upon the movable frame attaining its uppermost and out of use position its return to the lowermost or. in useposition is brought about through the medium of the mechanism and gearing actuated by the motive power of the vehicle, such gearing'being brought into use by an adjustable screw or pin Z provided on the movable frame and capable of operating the said mechanism by engagement with a spring controlled lever m pivoted at m to the fixed frame, the gearing serving to operate a pulley n for rewinding thereon aliexible member a connected with the movable frame, the unwinding of the flexible member having been effected when the frame was raised by the spring. The lever on carries a. toothed wheel 0 which is normally held by a spring m out of engagement with a toothed wheel 0 on the hub of the road wheel of the vehicle, but it is moved into sition by a spring controlled detent p which is provided with atapered or rounded reduced end or nose p and engages with a corresponding adjacent end wa on the lever m, the end m of the latter being moved into the engaged position by the screw or pin Z bearing against the said lever m. To ensure the detent p being held against movement during the greater part of the movement of the movable frame whenthe nose p is engaged with theend m of the lever 'm the slidable rod 9 is provided with a feather or rib g which travels between studs or projections g on the detent p, the upper end of the feather or rib g becoming dis engaged from the studs 9 when the guard approaches its lowermost position to permit the nose of the detent being moved out of engagement with the end of the lever m, such disengagement being effected by an adjustable finger g mounted on the upper end of the movable frame. Such finger Q bears against the tapered or rounded end of the detent p and effects the desired movement of the latter whereupon the lever m is actuated by its spring m and the gearing disengaged. The feather or rib also serves to move the detent p to the disengaged position when the guard is prevented from moving to the lowermost position by engagement with the upper surface of the curb or obstruction, the engagement with such upper surface serving to move the guard upwardly relatively to the movable frame and in so doing to move the slidable rod 9 through the said hemispherical member f being lifted. 111 thus being moved the slidable rod 9 is caused to partially rotate through the medium of a pin thereon engaging with a spiral or inclined groove f formed in the aforesaid sleeve f, and in the rod 9 being thus par tially rotated the feather or rib g is caused to operate on the studs or projections g to mo-ve'the detent to the disengaged posltion whereupon the gearing is capable of being disengaged by the spring controlled lever-m and the movable frame again raised to the out of use position. The hemispherical member j and the parts connected therewith as shown in Figure 3 is arranged to operate in conjunction with the slidable rod 9 at or near one end of the guard while the other end of the guard is arranged to be supported by a pin 1' also provided with a hemispherical member and arranged on a seating attached to the movable frame, the member being held against the seating by a spring arranged on the pin beneath the seatin The splash guard is constituted of. sheet metal inwardly curved at each end as well as at the upper and lower margins while a piece of suitable flexible material 8 is secured to the lower edge. The splash guard is attached to the hemispherical members by the pins t, bridge pieces t and pins 25 as shown in Figure 3, and provided with a rearcasing a for enclosing the said pins 25 and t and bridge pieces 15 between it and the splash guard and preventing the access of mud thereto. To facilitate the upward movement of the movable frame and prevent the same being retarded by the gearing on the lever on the gearing is provided with a free wheel device as shown in Figure 4 and comprising a silent gripping, pawl 2'0. pivotally mounted near the outer periphery of the gearing and adapted to engage with a sleeve w of the said gearing the arrangement being such that the pawl is caused to engage with the said sleeve when the gearing is rotated in one direction and is thrown out of engagement by centrifugal force when the gearing is rotated in the opposite direction during the upward movement of the frame.

It will be understood that the construction of splash guard attachment herein described with reference to the drawings may be modified in many ways without departing from the nature of the invention, for example the flexible connection with the pulley may be substituted by a toothed rack and the pulley formed with teeth for engagement therewith, the slidable rod 9 may be replaced by a flexible member arranged in tea sion and adapted to be flexed for permit ting the operation of the pawl and detent, the gearing may comprise frictional engaging wheels in place of toothed wheels, and instead of the gearing being actuated from the hub of the road) wheel it may be 0perated from another part thereof or by a separate wheel driven from the power motor of the vehicle. Further if desired, the bridge pieces t or equivalent fittings may be connected witlr the splash guard by one or more non-rigid or spring plates to absorb any shocks and concussions occurring to the guard, while the various connections between the several parts of the attachment as well as the points of attachment to the vehicle may be fitted with or effected through the medium of spring metal washers or rubber or equivalent blocks or cushions.

'lVhere the attachment is not required for use one or more sliding or rotatable bolts or theirequivalent may be provided for secur-,

ing the movable frame to the fixed frame near the uppermost or other desired position, or the adjustable screw or pin Z may be so mounted as to be capable of being movedto a position out of line with the lever m to prevent the latter being operated upon the movable frame reaching the uppermost position, or other suitable means may be provided to this end.

To facilitate the detachment of a road wheel from its axle, the splash guard attachment is mounted on a supporting frame se cured to the axle, the supporting frame being preferably of rectangular shape and provided with sleeves for receiving horizontally extending bolts engaging with the fixed frame of the attachment.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A splash guard for vehicles comprising a fixed frame adapted to be operatively connected with a vehicle axle, a movable frame slidable on said fixed frame, rollers carried by said frames, a guard resiliently supported by said movable frame, locking means carried by said frames for maintaining said movable frame normally in operative position, a slidable rod carried by said guard for releasing said locking means, a compression spring connected with said frames for sliding said movable frame to inoperative position, means within said spring for retarding the movement of said last mentioned frame, a lever pivotally con nected. with said fixed frame, a gear on said lever, a pulley connected with said gear and rotatable therewith, a second gear on said vehicle axle, adjustable means on said movable frame adapted to rock said lever for placing said gears in mesh, a detent engaging said lever for maintaining said gearsin mesh, a flexible member connected with said pulley and said movable frame whereby rotation of said gears returns said .movable frame to operative position, and means carried by said movable frame for releasing said detent and disengaging said gears.

2. A splash guard for vehicles comprising a fixed frame adapted to be operatively connected with a vehicle axle, a movable frame slidable on said fixed frame, rollers carried by said frames, a guard resiliently supported by said movableframe, locking means car-, ried by said frames for maintaining said movable frame normally in operative position, a slidable rod carried by said guard for releaslng said locking means, a compres- ,sion spring connected with said frames for Lil sliding said movable frame to inoperative position, means within said spring for retarding the movement of said lastrmentioned frame, a lever pivotally connected with said fixed frame, a gear on said lever, a free wheel device associated with saidgear, a pulley connected With said gear and fetatable therewith, a second gear on said vehicle axle, adjustable means on said movableframe adapted to rock said, lever for placing said gears in mesh, a detent engaging said lever for maintaining said gears in mesh, a flexible member connected with said pulley and said movableframe whereby rotation of said, gears returns said movable frame to operative position, and means carried by said movable frame for releasing to the movable frame, means operable by said member'for maintaining said movable frame normally in inoperative position, means for moving said frame tosaid inop- -erativef position, and means for returning said movable frame to operative position.

' HARRY VOLLER NoRRis GRAVELEY. 

